


two by two

by withoutwords



Category: EastEnders (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Humor, M/M, Sex, Tropes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-08
Updated: 2019-09-08
Packaged: 2020-10-12 11:18:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20563424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/withoutwords/pseuds/withoutwords
Summary: It’s not until he’s half way through his lasagne and sipping at his wine that he realises what’s going on.“Wait,” he says, putting down the glass. “Is this a date?”





	two by two

**Author's Note:**

> For the prompt, "Ben and Callum first times? ORRR Five +One: Five times Ben initiates plus one time Callum does."

_ 1 _

Callum almost wishes this was their first kiss. Ben pulling him in by his tie before pushing him up against the wall at the car lot, the both of them giggling into each others mouths. It’s sweet, and fun, and Callum knows with every inch of him that  _ this _ is what he wants.  _ This _ is right.

“You alright, lover boy?” Ben says with a teasing smile, looking up at Callum through his lashes.

He’s so gorgeous Callum might explode. “Better than alright,” he promises, pulling Ben back in by the waist to kiss him again. 

They’d been dancing around it for so long, now. Ben would flirt with him at the funeral home, or the cafe, or even at the Vic at the top of his voice as if Callum might get embarrassed. Callum didn’t. He enjoyed it, he let himself enjoy it. 

Sometimes he even tried to flirt back.

(He was working on it.)

“So?” Ben says low, and gravelly, his hands on Callum’s lower back and dangerously close to his arse. “You wanna take this somewhere? Or you wanna save it for another day?”

Callum felt suddenly seized with panic. Last time they’d done this they’d had more than a few drinks between them. The thought of Ben in his bed, _being_ with him - it both excited and terrified Callum equally. “Would that be okay? If we waited?”

“Course it would.”

“I just …”

“Callum,” Ben says firmly, a hand flat against his chest and big honest eyes. “It’s fine. On one condition.”

“Yeah.”

Ben grins at him, pulling him by his tie again and pushing him into a chair. “Kiss me some more,” he says with a laugh and climbs into Callum’s lap.

“Yeah, yes, let’s,” Callum stutters out, before Ben gets his mouth on him again.

_ 2 _

There’s a new pasta place in town that Callum’s had his eye on for weeks. When Ben invites him Callum almost falls over his own feet to get ready, almost leaving the house with one shoe on and his shirt around backwards. It’s not until he’s half way through his lasagne and sipping at his wine that he realises what’s going on.

“Wait,” he says, putting down the glass. “Is this a date?”

Ben almost spits out his own drink. “Are you kidding me?”

“What?”

“We’re sitting at a table for two, with candlelight and soft music playing and you’re just askin’ me now if this is a date? Are you serious?”

“I’m sorry! I thought you only asked me ‘cause you wanted me to shut up about it or something!”

“Oh my God,” Ben says, but he’s laughing, Callum feeling his face start to heat up with embarrassment. “You absolute bellend.”

“Shut up!” Callum protests, but he’s smiling as he buries his face in his wine glass to take a big gulp.

They’d been doing this thing, seeing each other, for a while now - but between work and family and other commitments the most they’d really done is share some chips at the Vic or get a takeaway and take it back to Callum’s place.

Tonight they’re both wearing shirts, and they’ve come to town, and Ben’s right. It is all pretty romantic.

“Trust you to be thinking more with your guts,” Ben teases, and Callum gives him a kick under the table, making Ben gasp and laugh. He feels bad now, that he hasn’t appreciated it fully - he reaches out and grabs Ben’s free hand.

“This is great, really,” he says honestly, watching Ben smile softly back at him. “Thank you. I mean it. I’ll make it up to ya.”

“WIll you?” Ben jokes, wriggling his eyebrows at Callum and Callum kicks him again.

“I mean with another date. Perve.”

_ 3 _

Lola decides to have their engagement party outside in the Square, and Jay doesn’t seem to mind either way. Callum watches him look at Lola with the most adoring doe eyes, so he’s pretty sure she could suggest they do it on the moon and he would just go along with it. 

Besides, it turns out nice really.

There’s string fairy lights and big banners and balloons. There’s a huge table with a light feature and a three tier cake that could probably feed all of Walford at a push.

“They really went all out, hey?” Whit says, stopping by and stealing a sip of Callum’s beer. He smiles at her.

“I s’pose you had a hand in all the decorations?”

Whitney shrugs and smiles back. “Maybe some. Whatd’ya think?”

“It looks great,” he tells her honestly, glad to see that she appreciates the compliment. It took a while (they’re probably not all the way there) but they’ve managed to salvage their friendship. She’s even sort of friends with Ben, which Callum appreciates.

“Thanks, Halfway,” she teases, kissing him on the cheek and disappearing again. 

Within moments she’s replaced by Ben. He’s staggering a little - he’ll regret mixing bubbles with beer tomorrow - and he grins at Callum like it hasn’t been five minutes since he saw him. “Hello beautiful.”

“Hi yourself,” Callum says, grunting when Ben falls into his lap. “Where’d you go?”

“Was dancing with my daughter.”

“That’s nice.” 

“It was. She was standing on my feet,” he tells Callum, and also takes a mouthful of his beer. He’s pretty sure there won’t be any left for him at this rate. “So cute.”

“Wish I’d seen ya.”

“Aw,” Ben says, then presses a sloppy kiss to Callum’s mouth. “Soft.”

Callum laughs and kisses him again, dipping him back and making him laugh. He’s so happy these days - not just with his family, and Callum, but with himself. LIke he’s stropped trying to prove to Phil that he’s worth being happy.

Callum hopes he’s helped him realise it.

“Come dance with me,” Ben asks quietly between little pecks, wrapping his arms around Callum’s neck.

“Seriously?”

“Yeah! Why not?”

“Well I can’t dance, for one.”

“Sure you can. I’ve seen you when no one’s watching.”

“Except this time they'll all be watching.”

“C’mon,” Ben groans, standing up and grabbing Callum’s hands. “Come dance with me, lover boy. Hold me in your arms and sweep me off my feet and show everyone how lucky I am.”

Ben pulls, and Callum follows. “Alright, alright,” he says, acting disgruntled, but they both know he’s not.

How could he say no to that?

_ 4 _

The morning of his birthday, Ben had given Callum an envelope. He’d thought it was a card with some money or something, so when he opened it and found two tickets to the coast he’d just sat there like an idiot not knowing what to say.

They’ve been together almost a year now, Callum supposes he should start expecting these things. They’re serious about each other - and they know it - but this is Callum’s first relationship with a man. He keeps losing the cues.

Then again, maybe there are none. 

Maybe Callum just needs to relax, and go with it.

“One of these days, I’m gonna be the one surprising you,” Callum says when they’re lying in their hotel bed, naked and spent and curled together.

“What d’ya mean?”

“Just … gifts, holidays. I donno, you’re always surprising me.”

“I just like to do it, that’s all.”

“I know. I know you ain’t expecting nothing in return. I just meant I wanna do the same for you.”

“Okay. I won’t say no.”

Callum laughs and pulls Ben in to kiss the top of his head. He’s always managed to be an idealist - despite his family, despite his future - but he’s scared of how perfect this is sometimes. How quickly it could disappear.

It might not be forever. They might break up one day and move on to new people. But Callum can’t imagine it and he sure as hell doesn’t want to.

Just because Ben’s his first doesn’t mean he can’t be Callum’s last as well.

“I could get you a horse,” Callum says from nowhere, making Ben splutter.

“_What_?”

“See, it’s surprising!”

Ben’s laughing now, rolling over to perch himself on his elbows and rest his chin on Callum’s chest. “You’re amazing, you know that?”

“Make’s two of us,” Callum tells him, and he leans in for a gentle, pecking kiss. 

“I love you.”

Callum leans in for another kiss, and this time it’s deeper. He rolls Ben onto his back, covering him with his body and pressing kisses to his face and neck and shoulders. “I love you, too,” he tells him desperately, “Love you so much.”

Ben grabs him, hands on his face, and pulls Callum back up to him.

“Love you more,” he teases, grinning, and Callum growls at him.

Always trying to out do him.

_ 5 _

Ben sends him a message with an address that’s just outside of Walford. They were meant to be meeting for lunch, and Callum's  _ starving _ , so he's disappointed to turn up and see a small set of flats with not a single food truck in sight.

“Where’s my lunch?” he calls as he gets out of the car, fixing up his jacket. Ben laughs.

“Food, food, food, that’s all there is to you, ain’t it?”

“Shut up,” Callum tells him, and kisses him. “What’s going on?”

Ben swings an arm out to gesture at the flat before them. He’s smiling like he won the lottery or something, and it takes Callum a really long moment to even start putting the pieces together. 

“What? It’s yours?”

“No,” Ben says, with a voice that says,  _ you plod _ . “It’s ours. I got it for both of us. Well, you, me and Lexi when it’s my night to have her.”

Callum still has no idea what to say.

“Two beds, one bath, pretty decent kitchen. The guy’s s’posed to be here with the key, I donno.” Ben looks at his watch.

“Wait, wait,” Callum finally manages to say, putting his hands up. “You bought a flat? For us? You want … you want to live together?”

“I put a deposit on a flat. And yes, of course.”

Callum looks at the house, to Ben, to the house and back. “Ben!”

“What?” Ben’s laughing again. “I’m barely at my place any more, and half of my stuff is in your closet. And - and I thought this way we can start new, y’know? Something that’s just ours.”

“I can’t believe you bought -”

“Put a deposit -”

“This is crazy!”

Ben’s grin seems to wobble and he steps in closer to Callum, pulling at the bottom of his jacket. “Hey. I’m sorry," he says in a quiet voice, not meetungd Callums eye. " I thought you’d want it, I didn’t think to ask ya. I’m sorry.”

“No,” Callum cries, and pulls Ben in for a hug, kissing his cheek. “No, it’s amazing. This is -  _ you’re _ amazing.”

They kiss, smiling at each other with their hands entwined.

“So you’re in, lover boy? Wanna get a place with me, make an honest man outta me?”

“Yes,” Callum says with a laugh, as another car pulls up beside them. The estate agent with the key, he hopes. “Yeah. Let’s do it.”

_ +1 _

Callum carries the box around for weeks. Over a month, if he’s honest, hands shaking any time he handles it. It’s not that he’s doubting himself, not at all that he doesn’t want to - it’s just he wants it to be perfect.

Ben deserves perfect.

“Please, Cal,” Ben’s begging, grabbing Callum by his lapels and onto the couch. “It’s been a long day, I missed you.”

“Alright, okay,” Callum says around a laugh, trying to find space there for the both of them as Ben presses kisses to his throat. “Would you  _ stop _ ?”

“Never.”

They end up on their bed eventually, Ben’s shirt ripped open and Callum perched above him revelling in the scene. He’s sprawled out and sighing, pulling and lunging and kissing at Callum as if expecting him to disappear any moment.

“We got time,” Callum reminds him, but Ben shakes his head.

“No, been thinking bout this all day. C’mon, fuck me, _please_, c’mon.”

In the end, Callum doesn’t even get undressed. He just pulls out his cock, condoms and slick, burying himself deep in Ben and listening to him shout. Ben angles up, and hooks his ankles, and tells Callum to move already, so he does. Pushing deep, over and over, and muttering nonsense in Ben’s ear.

It’s too much, too fast. His body trembles all over like it can’t handle the weight of this - the two of them twisted together and moving together and being together in a way they never will again. With any one. Callum paws at Ben's face, presses his lip down with a thumb, and watches Ben takes it in his mouth. 

It's too much. With just a few more thrusts Callum comes too soon, yelling and swearing and feeling the sharp claw of Ben’s nails down his back as he follows him over the edge.

They slump together, and mewl and pant and listen to the sound of each other trying to catch their breaths. It's funny how something so good, so big, so unbelievable, finishes so small and quiet.

“That what you were thinking of, huh?” Callum asks, Ben huffing a laugh.

“Nah, that was better.”

Callum swats at him as he gets up to get rid of the condom, spotting his jacket flung over the chair.

It’s stupid, he knows, but this is it isn’t it? No perfection, no cues - he just has to go with it.

Do what feels right.

“Ben,” he says softly, pulling out the box. He's half dressed and covered in spunk and probably looks a right mess, but it doesn't matter. He's never been more sure, or more in love.

“I got a surprise for ya.”

**Author's Note:**

> thefancyspin.tumblr.com


End file.
